The Masters: Our Story

The Masters was founded in 1973 by Ann and Gary Bray, two renowned stylists and visionaries in our industry.

At the time, hair styles were only performed weekly by a professional stylist in a salon. Few people owned or used a hand-held hair dryer, let alone had the knowledge to style their own hair like the fashion gurus in New York or Paris.

Ann and Gary revolutionized the industry by showing clients how to achieve “The Masters” look at home by using simple but professional techniques. Soon, people were lined up at their new salon to learn the secrets that the Brays taught.

The fashion sense and exceptional service that they brought to The Masters took off like wildfire. Before long, the clientele of The Masters included everyone from country music performers to Broadway musical stars and people from all walks of life. The Masters salon became a huge success, and Ann and Gary began sharing their talents worldwide.

Ann and Gary Bray

Ann and Gary met in the realm of the hair styling competition, a community that few people are privileged to see. Once they were competitors, but they soon formed a united team, both on the stage and in marriage

The couple traveled the globe, now competing together instead of against each other. Gary coached the 1978 and 1984 USA teams, bringing home the Gold Medal twice. In 1978, Ann was the first American female to win the World Championship of Hair Dressing.

From that time forward, their talents were so recognized and in demand that other national teams started to ask for them as team trainers. Ann and Gary have trained members of the U.S., Korean, Australian, Mexican, and Icelandic teams for competition. The Masters would also receive visitors for continuing education from countries all over the world, including Belgium, Germany,Russia and even Japan. Some of the world’s greatest and most talented artists were eventually trained by the Brays at The Masters.

Today, Ann continues to style with the same passion she had in the early days. She is living out her promise to Gary to never give up on being the absolute best in her craft. Because of that passion for excellence, she has been knighted in Paris for her achievements and later became a 2006 North American Hair Stylist Award winner.

Most recently, Ann has been involved with the hair designs used in the second, third and fourth installments of the Hunger Games series of movies (Catching Fire, Mockingjay Parts I and II.)

The team at The Masters continues to be blessed by having Ann Bray as their trainer, mentor, and artistic guide.